Into the Mist: A Pair of Historical Romances

Summary

The Widow From Manchester & Her California Handyman - A widow from Manchester, where she and her husband had a successful distillery business, decides to become a mail order bride and make a new home for herself and teen daughter in California; the only obstacle being her new husband who is a former alcoholic.

The Organ Playing Mail Order Bride - When a sheriff finds that he needs someone to help take care of his two children after his wife dies, he never thought that he’d get an organ playing non-believer like the woman who arrived on his doorstep one day.

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Into the Mist - Doreen Milstead

Into the Mist: A Pair of Historical Romances

By

Doreen Milstead

Copyright 2016 Susan Hart

The Widow From Manchester & Her California Handyman

Synopsis: The Widow From Manchester & Her California Handyman - A widow from Manchester, where she and her husband had a successful distillery business, decides to become a mail order bride and make a new home for herself and teen daughter in California; the only obstacle being her new husband who is a former alcoholic.

For Madeleine, Manchester had never been the same since Jack died. She was now forty-five years old, and they had been married for thirty years. Jack had been the only man she ever knew. They were a fulfilled couple that loved and respected each other. They started life together and always thought they would also end it together, but apparently, it was never meant to be.

Both coming from simple parents, countrymen from outside of Manchester, Madeleine and Jack had to make a living. Because they knew how to make use of what they had, twenty years before they opened a small distillery in a modest neighborhood from Manchester. One couldn`t say they were rich people, but they managed to create a simple and normal life, and most importantly, they liked what they did.

None of them ever had problems with drinking too much. This was not the reason why they liked preparing alcohol so much. Instead, they saw scotch and wine as a way of giving a longer purpose to grains and fruits. Extracting the essence of taste from plants was a wonderful process for the two of them, and they did it well! Many pub owners and even people from high society used to come and buy their products. Everybody knew they had the best scotch in Manchester.

Because it was a family business, they never thought about expanding it. They liked to keep things simple. Every bottle they produced was made with passion and dedication. This is why they were all so good. Mass producing was not for them, and as long as they could make a simple living, they were happy with what they had.

Everything was ruined when Jack died of typhus.

This was not a disease people of his kind usually had, but Jack was a proud man and refused to get the proper treatment. He always said that nothing bad could ever happen to him. Well, it did. He left Madeleine alone, with their fifteen-year-old daughter, Darlene. The girl was what most would call young and restless.

She had her mother`s beauty but unfortunately not her intelligence as well. Due to her parents, Darlene had a happy and careless childhood. Her only duty was to learn and become the fine lady her parents hoped she would. They never thought she could become the spoiled and rude child she was.

Madeleine hoped that once she grew up, Darlene would be a reasonable, mature woman. Her mother always believed her bad behavior was just a matter of age and it would pass with the years going by. Only later did she realize things were not that easy, but there is a long story until then, and many things have to be told first.

The alcohol business was a men`s business and women generally had nothing to do with it. Madeleine`s advantage during the years was her husband, who knew she was more than a simple woman and who saw her as his true partner. It was not the same with their clients. Jack was the one who negotiated prices, who met with new customers and also the one who delivered the merchandise.

Madeleine was the inside person, in charge of the distillery process and the quality of their products. This way of organizing duties only proved to be a problem when Jack died. Left alone, Madeleine couldn`t talk to any of the clients. This was not because she didn`t want to or because she was incapable of doing it, but because they were all men and they all thought it was below their dignity to do business with a woman, much less liquor business. This is how in less than six months after Jack`s death, Madeleine had to sell their last boiler. She had to raise her daughter alone, and it was obvious that there was no honest way for her to do it in Manchester.

Marrying another man from England would have been an option, but not for Madeleine. She was an independent woman, who was used to being treated as an equal, and not as women were usually treated: As simple wives whose only purpose was to please their husbands. There was one more thing: She wanted to keep doing her work.

Losing Jack was already too difficult. Losing her passion would have been too much. With or without Jack, she had the obligation of taking their tradition further to preserve their unique methods and knowledge. However, there was a different option she heard about: America. People in Manchester always used to talk about how open-minded and easy-going everybody was there.

For them, the new lands were the promised lands and everything was possible there. All men and women were equal and anybody could make a good life for him or herself in America. Nobody judged you and your life was your own, to do as you pleased. At least, this was what Madeleine heard about the new continent. If it was true, then this could be her only chance of raising her daughter and continuing to do what she loved.

After all, besides Jack, the two of them had no other family in England, so nothing kept them there.

Madeleine knew for sure there were many single men in America who wanted to find a fine wife from England. She knew many poor girls and even elder women who left The Kingdom for a better life in America. Of course the trip had some risks, but if so many could do it,